Caliper Replacement/Upgrade

By The Boss

I have been having some problems with my brakes pulling when applied since the truck was new. It had been getting worse and after some diagnosis, determined the problem to be sticking calipers. While I was at it, I ordered new rotors since my factory ones were warped and gouged. They could have been turned, but they would have been down to the minimum thickness, so why not go will all new stuff. I already had lifetime Raybestos Semi-metallic pads so I swapped for a set of those as well. I purchased my parts from Napa. Unloaded calipers, $29 each. Rotors, $49 each.

This is the factory caliper setup on the drivers side. Once the wheel is removed the the truck on jack stands, you need to remove the brake hose banjo bolt. Once removed, wrap a plastic baggy round the hose end to avoid loss of fluid and contamination. Then remove the caliper like you would for changing the pads. Use the 3/8" Allen driver to remove the two caliper pins on the backside of the caliper. Do not throw away the caliper or damage it in any way! There is typically a core charge on calipers which in fact is more than the remanufactured calipers you just bought. Drain as much brake fluid from the old caliper as you can and put it in the box from the new caliper.

Remove the bag of seals and boots that should have come with the new caliper. If they did not, I recommend that you buy a rebuild kit that includes new seals. Here is the caliper and seals as is right out of the box.

There are 4 bushings, 2 outer seals, 2 boots and 2 copper washers. The bushings set in the indentations just inside the caliper pin hole. Use a screwdriver to maneuver them into place. Refer to your old caliper for exact placement.

Once the 4 inner seals are in place, the inside outer seals need to be installed. These are the flat washer style seals and are inserted in the caliper pin holes and firmly seated.

Finally the outer boots are installed over the caliper pin hole flanges. You may need to apply a small amount to grease to the boot to get it to seat as it has a metal ring inside that does not allow the boot to stretch over the flange.

Once the seals and bushings are installed, remove the plastic seal covering the banjo bolt hole. Take the caliper and 2 copper washers back to the truck. The washers get placed, one on each side the end of brake hose and the banjo bolt reinstalled. Installation of the caliper is reverse of removal. Be sure to grease the caliper pins with the high-temp grease to help them slide. I also recommend replacing the rotors or having them turned while you are doing this. New pads are also recommended. Repeat for the other side.

Finally, you need to bleed the brakes according to your specific vehicle. You need to really watch the fluid reservoir as you do this because you are filling up two calipers and can run out of fluid and then you would need to bleed the master cylinder, ABS, RWAL and the brakes.